Readers' Choice Awards - Computing (Part 1)

Readers' Choice Awards - Computing (Part 1)

Back in November 2012, we asked you - our intelligent and tech-savvy readers and members of the online community - for your favorite brands and services in 41 categories spanning the tech industry trinity of computing, communications, and consumer electronics. Your response was nothing short of overwhelming, as we received more than 249,000 votes. Here's a big thank you to you all. So, here then are the results of this detailed survey; check out to see if your favorite brands won. For the more curious readers, you can also check out previous year's results.

Best Desktop CPU Brand - Intel

After a record-breaking 2011, chipzilla saw slight drops in both revenue and net income in 2012. Certainly, the decline of PC sales was one contributing factor. That said, when it comes to desktop CPU, Intel is still the name to beat. For one, the vast majority of desktop PC systems in the market today use Intel's 22nm-based 'Ivy Bridge' processors. And don't bet on Intel slowing down either: the successor to Ivy Bridge, codenamed 'Haswell', is expected to arrive in the middle of this year. 90% of the votes? That sounds about right.

Best Gaming Graphics Processor Brand - NVIDIA

Yes, NVIDIA is making a big push into mobile with its Tegra 4 and Tegra 4i mobile processors, but that doesn't mean it's neglecting its desktop GPU portfolio. Last year, we witnessed the arrival of its 28nm Kepler architecture, and were impressed with the single GK104 GPU-powered GeForce GTX 680 and dual GK104 GPU-powered GeForce GTX 690. And more recently, its GeForce GTX Titan is the fastest single-GPU graphics card we've tested to date. With 76% of the votes, NVIDIA is once again the runaway winner for the Best Gaming Graphics Processor Brand award.

Best Graphics Card Brand - ASUS

This is the fourth straight year ASUS has won the Readers' Choice award for Best Graphics Card Brand. Its percentage of votes has even increased from 37% to 43%. Surely, ASUS' wide range of offerings is a huge contributing factor; whether you prefer AMD or NVIDIA GPUs, you're bound to find a suitable graphics card from ASUS' lineup. And if you're a hardcore gamer, you owe yourself a look at its Republic of Gamers (ROG) series of graphics cards, which is now led by the super-fast ROG ARES II Radeon HD 7990.

Best Motherboard Brand - ASUS

For many years now, ASUS' motherboards are known for its strong balance of features, performance, and reliability. This has resulted in a strong brand following that's hard to erode, despite the competitive landscape. Also for the fourth year running, ASUS has strolled home with the Readers' Choice award for Best Motherboard Brand, garnering a whopping 56% of the votes along the way.

Best PC Memory Brand - Kingston

Kingston has completed a three-peat by taking home the Readers' Choice award for Best PC Memory Brand for the third year running. And again, it has done so with a very huge margin. Just recently, the company celebrated the 10th anniversary of HyperX, its line of products for gamers and PC enthusiasts. And to mark the occasion, it has announced a 10th Anniversary Edition of its HyperX memory, and is backing it up with lifetime warranty. If your needs aren't as extreme, Kingston's competitively priced ValueRAM memory offerings are worth a look.